What Doesn't Kill Me
by Jay5312
Summary: It takes a thief to catch a thief. M.I.High are recruiting using the most valuable gem in the world to lure thieves in. That's just asking for trouble. For Emma and David, trouble is exactly what they're looking for.
1. Secret Plans and Magic Hands

**First chapter of my new story. I haven't abandoned _Shadow Knight_, I just can't seem to get anything on paper for it. Hope you like the story.**

* * *

Getting in is easy. Getting out is more difficult. Getting in and out, with what you came for and without being spotted, is damn near impossible. My name is Emma, and this is what I do for a living. I'm fourteen years old, 5'' 7, brown hair, green eyes, years of martial arts training. For me, stealing stuff is easy. I could steal valuable items and sell them to the highest bidder, but I don't. I steal artefacts and return them to the people they belong to.

This leads me to the Sun Diamond, the biggest diamond in the world. It's going to be on display in the National Geology Museum, England. The Sun Diamond doesn't belong to them or even the person who sold it to them. It belongs to a poor family that live in the North. Why am I telling you this? I thought it would be obvious. I'm going to steal it. But first, I've got a lot of work to do.

For two days in a row there's going to be an exhibition party, late in the evening. I'm going to crash one of them of course. My invitation has already been forged by my partner in crime, David. He's a techno-geek. He looks like he could flatten a small army however, and that is something we've often used to our advantage. He's fifteen years old, 5''11, black hair, grey eyes, years of hacking and a martial arts crash course given to him by me.

The plan is simple. But nothing ever works out the way you hope it will.

* * *

**Time: 10:00pm**

_**Emma**_

The night of the second party I'm standing outside going over everything with David. The diamond is on the third floor of the building and the party will only take place on the ground floor. Security cameras are active on all floors but we've already thought of that. Two weeks before the parties, we'd sneaked into the museum and filmed small tapes with no one going past from the angles of the security cameras. David's going to hack the cameras and put the tapes on loop as I reach each camera. The diamond is protected by lasers and a motion detector so getting it will be difficult, but not impossible. Sneaking past a motion sensor just requires you to be slow, at a steady pace. David will try to disable the motion sensor, but no promises. Well, here I go.

I walk into the museum, showing my fake invite to the guards at the door before walking in smoothly. I can see a lot of familiar faces in the lobby, from billboards and adverts, but I ignore it. I can see the door that will lead me out of the Lobby and I slowly make my way towards it, making small talk along the way, as not to seem suspicious. I slip past the door frame and lean on the wall, breathing a small sigh of relief. I take only a moment to rest before checking my watch. 3, 2, 1, now. I dart down the corridor and press the button beside the elevator. The elevator doors open after a few seconds and I creep inside slowly, checking for hidden security devices.

I see none and press the button to take me up to the third floor. The elevator doors close and the steel contraption begins moving upwards.

* * *

**Time: 11:30pm**

_**M.I.9**_

The lights in the main exhibition room are turned on and three people can be seen around the Sun Diamond. One is a young man, about 25 years old. He's hanging from an open window in the glass dome, that serves as a roof for a part of the main exhibition room, by a wire attached to a harness. Another is a woman in her 30's, standing on her hands between the lasers. The last is a nerdy looking boy, about 17 years of age. He's standing behind the glass case that houses the Diamond with a miniature laser cutter and a vacuum pad.

Chief Agent Stark walks into the room to inform them of the set up. The Sun Diamond was placed there to lure in thieves who would be given the opportunity to join M.I.9. These people would have to be the best to avoid all the traps that had been laid around the museum. There is only one problem though. The Sun Diamond is gone.

* * *

**Time 10:15pm**

_**Emma**_

I hear a small click and a brief screech before the elevator jolts downwards slightly and stops. Crap. I prise open the emergency hatch in the top of the elevator and pull myself through. The wires are slippery but sturdy. I pull my dress off, and shove it in the rucksack I had picked up in the elevator, to reveal black shorts and a navy blue tank top. I pull fingerless climbing gloves out of my bag and pull them on before swinging my bag on my back and beginning my ascent up the wires.

The strain burns my muscles but I continue on, counting the doors until I reach the third floor. I take my legs off the wire and swing them backwards and forwards, building up momentum until I let go of the wire completely and grab for the small ridges on either side of the door. I miss. I begin to fall down the shaft but grab on to the bottom of the doorway.

So, here I am, suspended above a mighty drop, holding on with only my fingertips. I reach one hand up and try to pull up with my other arm, wedging my fingers in between the doors. The doors open of their own accord after my slight push and I pull myself into the corridor. The red lights on the cameras turn off indicating that the cameras have been cut. I run down the corridor and into the main exhibition room. The motion sensor on the other side of the room is still on, I can tell by a red flashing light. Then, the light stops. David, you are a genius. I reach into my bag and pull out a super fine mist sprayer. I spray the water everywhere and the red beams of the lasers become obvious.

Without a motion detector, this part becomes rather easy. I weave my way through the red beams, a roll here, a flip there, occasionally missing the red lasers by only millimetres. When I reach the pedestal with the diamond sitting atop it in its glass case, my toes hit the pedestal. I hear a hollow thunking sound but dismiss it to be dealt with later. I pull out a small knife and cut around the base of the glass. I pick up the glass box and lift it before tucking it under one arm and snatching the diamond.

That's when it hits me. Who in their right mind would put the worlds most valuable gemstone, in the middle of a room with only lasers and a motion detector to guard it? No one. I kick the pedestal yet again. The same hollow thunking sound. I replace the glass box but keep a hold of what I believe to be the fake diamond. I get into a squatting position and feel my way around the seemingly wooden pedestal. There. I small crack in the wood tells me everything. The crack is a single, straight, unbroken line, stretching from the top of the pedestal to the bottom. So that's where it is. I slip my knife into the crack and prise off the wooden panel that hides the safe. I then put my ear to the door and begin to turn the knob ever-so-slowly. Click. Turn the knob the other way. Click. And again. Click. The door swings open.

The real Sun Diamond is sitting on a plush, purple cushion inside the hidden safe. I grab it and replace it with the fake. My job is done. Now it's all down to David.

* * *

**Time: 12:00 Midnight**

_**M.I.9**_

"The fake diamond is gone but the real one is still in the safe. Whoever actually managed to rob the museum was good, but not good enough," Frank explains to the team.

"Do you have any idea who got away with the fake?" Oscar asks.

"Unfortunately, none," Frank replied, "However we think we may have found-"

Frank was interrupted by the sound of his communicator beeping.

"Frank, this is chief agent Stark, the diamond that was recovered from the museum was a fake. The thief got the real diamond!"


	2. Foot-Shakes and Grand Escapes

**Hi guys, next chapter here! Hope you like it!**

* * *

"What do you mean the thief got the real diamond?!" Frank yelled.

"Somehow, the thief got in and out without being spotted and figured out that the diamond on display wasn't real. Whoever they are, they're out there and they have the real diamond," Stark half whispered, half shouted down the communicator in that strange way of his, before hanging up.

"The thief got the diamond!" Rose shouted.

"Great. I suppose this means we've got to find them then," Carrie added.

* * *

It took half an hour to realise that the tapes were on loop.

It took three days to find Emma and David in past surveillance tapes, videoing empty corridors.

It took a week to match up any records.

It took all of four seconds to find them.

* * *

**Time: 1:30pm**

_**Emma**_

David and I are standing in front of the door to a small apartment. It's freezing cold and the paint is peeling. The diamond is in a locked container inside David's rucksack. I knock on the door three times and a young woman, about 25, opens the door.

"Yes?" She says, curious to our presence.

"I believe _this _belongs to you," I say, taking the container out of David's rucksack.

I place the container in the woman's hands and take the key off the chain around my neck. I unlock the box and open it, revealing the diamond. She stares at it for a moment with wide eyes before looking to us in shock.

"You're so young," She whispers, "CODE BLUE!"

A dozen men in black suits rush out the door around the woman. One grabs David and slams him into the wall, just next to the door. David struggles and kicks but to no avail as the man handcuffs him. In that moment, I don't think. I just react. I lash out, kicking one of the men hard in the groin, before grabbing an oncoming fist and twisting it until I hear a snap. The man screams and falls to the floor. I keep fighting but there's just too many of them and in the end, I am cuffed and thrown in a van next to David.

"I told you we should have brought the lock pick," David says happily from beside me.

"Now is _not _the time!" I shout back at him.

I look around the van and see a slightly balding man sitting opposite me. His name tag reads 'Chief Agent Stark'. I decide that I do not like these people so I will annoy their high authority figures. In other words, I poke him repeatedly with my foot.

"Stop that," He says. Some of the agents sitting nearer the front turn around to see what's happening. David gives me a look.

"If you're going to poke him, because I know I won't be able to stop you, at least do it bare-footed," He pushes his shoes off with his feet and pulls his socks off with his toes before poking Stark's nose with his big toe, "See?"

"I like your thinking," I reply and do the same before smearing my bare foot roughly across his face.

A dark skinned, black haired agent, who looks to be around my age, laughs loudly, sharing glances with two others. They all laugh at our antics and we continue to prod Stark until he orders someone called 'London' to sit opposite us instead. Thankfully, we it a speed bump whilst Stark is still standing and he hits his head on the roof of the van.

"Hi, I'm Emma. Nice to meet you," I say, extending my foot in front of me for an improvised hand-shake. 'London' gingerly takes my big toe between his thumb and forefinger, shaking my foot up and down gently. "You didn't have to shake my foot you know. Even I don't know where it's been and it's all sweaty from being in my trainer." He instantly drops my foot.

I shuffle around a bit, not making eye contact and everyone but David looks at me strangely. David's eyes widen in realisation and he glares at me playfully. I poke my tongue out at him when a resounding 'click' is heard in the van and I bring my hands in front of me, uncuffed. The agents start getting up when I wave at them vaguely. "Sit down. I'm not gonna try and escape. I'm actually curious," I explain.

"Well, if you're done being a smart arse, do you mind uncuffing me?" David says.

"Actually, when you ask me like that, I do mind. I'll leave you to suffer the roundabouts and speed-bumps on your own, thanks," I say jokingly. He says nothing and just gives me a look. "Fine." David turns slightly and I make short work of uncuffing him. When uncuffed, he turns back to his original position and prods me in the side. "Don't even start," I say, prodding him back. It soon turns into a full fledged poke war and everyone is looking at us strangely.

"We're weird, get over it," David says before the van stops abruptly.

"We're here," Stark says pompously.

We're lead out of the van and into a large building. The halls are like a huge maze of doors and codes. The main colour scheme seems to be white, even in the conference room we are lead into. A woman with bushy, dark brown hair and dark skin walks into the room. She has a commanding air about her and I instantly know that she's the one in charge. I shoot David a glance to make sure he's getting the same impression I am.

"Welcome to M.I.9," She says, "As master thieves we would like to offer you an opportunity."

"Shoot, go ahead," David inputs. I flick him. Hard. "Ow!"

"We would like to offer you both places in our young spies programme. It's that or jail," The woman says.

It only takes a glance to confirm it. Do we want to go to jail? Not really. Could we break out of jail? Yes, easily. Can we be bothered? No.

"I'm in if David is," I say.

Everyone looks at David. "Why are you all looking at me? I'm not going to abandon my partner in crime and I don't really fancy jail, thank-you-very-much."

"In that case, my name is Frank London and welcome to M.I.9. Your first test is to escape the building and remain undetected for 24 hours. You have one hundred British pounds and whatever you have on you. My team will be trying to find you. Good luck. You have a five minute head start. Go," Frank says.

We grab the money and run for the door. David makes short work of the code and then it's all down to my memory. Left. Left. Right. Down the stairs. Right. Right. Jump out the window. Run. I stop suddenly in realisation. David runs into we and we both tumble on the pavement.

"What?" David asks. He's lying on top of me, utterly confused.

"We can't check into a hotel. They'll search through the databases," I answer.

"Okay then. We can't go running aimlessly around London for 24 hours. We can't hide under a bridge or rough it out, we're not suited for it and we'll freeze to death. Err...I got it!"

"What?" He smirks at me and explains his plan. "David that's genius! You're brilliant, do you know that? I swear I could kiss you right now! That's amazing!"

"Thanks and yes. I do know I'm brilliant." I flick him lightly and he rolls off me. I get up and pull him up after me. We turn around and start running.

* * *

**Time: 2:00pm (24 hour later)**

_**M.I.9**_

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU LOST THEM!"


End file.
